I am working on incorporating more vegetables into my diet. I have a tendency to carb-overload, which needs to change. I don't think carbs are bad, if you couldn't tell from the slice of whole wheat bread I'm holding, but they don't need to take over my entire diet! I'm not a vegetarian, but I'm trying to prepare my meals as if I were. Then, I can choose to add meat if I want. My goal is to make my meals sound like, "veggie stir fry with chicken," not "chicken stir fry with veggies." This is my "after" image of a salad with olive oil and vinegar dressing. There is no meat and only one slice of bread. I'm feasting on veggies! Hopefully I will stick to my goal and keep my meals looking more like this one! This is definitely an after image because a "before" image would not have had as many chopped fresh veggies (radish, cucumber, bell pepper, 5 small kalamata olives) and would have had a lowfat and low flavor creamy dressing.

I'm typically a pretty healthy eater, but sugar is my downfall. Growing up, a lot of my meals came off the ice cream truck :p People used to call me Sugar Cube. I've cut back, but it's still something I love. I figure, as long as I'm eating lots of fresh produce and grains, I can indulge a little bit :) I'm trying to clear my place of junk right now, eating it up and not buying more.
LOL I have no idea.

@danakscully: As soon as I stopped eating crap, and really focused on eating well-balanced meals full of veggies, I honestly lost all desire for nasty foods. I'm careful to eat every 2 or 3 hours to avoid crashes. After a while, I realized that this is really the best tool to ward off cravings.

:) Beans, lentils, nuts, whole grains, all really healthy for you and full of protein (low or no fat, except nuts, but they're typically low in saturated). All have fiber as well.
I'm so jealous... I wish my junk food/sweets cravings would go away. :p That's what holds me back from eating well.

@danakscully: I'm not staying away from carbs! Sorry, my statement was a bit vague.
I've just be monitoring what I'm eating and, although I tend to eat very healthy foods and never have cravings for sweets/junk food, my protein consumption is very low (only about 10-15% of my diet). I just want to find a better way to incorporate low-fat proteins into my diet.

That looks great! Whats not to love about vegetables, honestly? They're delicious, nutritious and you can eat freaking tons of them for so few calories. Meat is good and all, but your totally right, it should be the accent rather than the center of a meal. I like to sneak an extra serving of veggies in for breakfast by making a crazy veggie omelette with whatever I have on hand. Fiber+protien= full until lunch.